21st Century Progressivism

Blog

  • Begging Benjamin Netanyahu

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    Most of the world is cringing and cowering and begging Benjamin Netanyahu to stop killing the Palestinians. He seems to have either closed his ears to us, or he enjoys tormenting us. Meanwhile, his Zionist allies are not at all embarrassed about ignoring our pleas. And we wait for someone to do something.

    Unfortunately, it seems as though the Israel/Palestine conflict has become a familiar category. Although we feel distress, disgust and outrage at what is happening, it’s a very old problem and we are not sufficiently alarmed.… Read the rest

  • The Trap of Zionism

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    Zionism was premised on anti-Semitism

    Zionism has ruined the Jewish people. Today, the world blames Israel for what has happened to the Palestinians. However, the inhabitants of Israel are pawns. Zionism is based on the belief that the Jews are part of a cohesive race of people who want nothing more than to live in Palestine. Ironically, this belief is basic anti-Semitism. A united Jewish ‘race’ was a phantom when Zionism was invented, yet this belief has resulted in the people of Israel proclaiming they own Palestine.… Read the rest

  • Immigration has Become the Norm

    Reading Time: 5 minutes
    Immigration has become the norm
    International Migration

    Immigration has become the norm. What are we going to do about it? For immigrants, immigration is not a choice. It’s life and death. It’s always been that way in the United States. However, as war, climate change and natural disasters continue to destroy living conditions for millions of people, even those in favor of accepting immigrants may fear that it requires a bigger commitment than they are prepared to make. If a public figure adds to that fear by lying about the dangers posed by immigrants, these same people might change their minds about immigration.… Read the rest

  • Bolsonaro Challenges God to Oust Him

    Reading Time: 2 minutesJair Bolsonaro of Brazil is one of the men who have stepped up to bristle and bar their teeth at the new sane direction the world is heading. If saying outrageous things and playing the media were enough to make things go his way he would have already won, but now he feels his hold on power slipping away. To drive his point home (his point of being the boss) he doesn’t hesitate to do real harm by stirring his followers into a frenzy.… Read the rest

  • Justice of the Rupture

    Reading Time: 6 minutesLately I’ve been thinking about the temptations of Jesus in the wilderness.  He fasted for 40 days and was hungry. During this time in the wilderness the devil tempted him three times.  The first temptation had to do with Jesus’s hunger. The second temptation, as I understand it, was connected with the human need for validation in the eyes of other people.  But the third temptation was something else altogether.  Matthew chapter 4, verses 8 and 9 imply that the ‘devil’ has the power to bestow ‘the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them,’ if we will only worship him. … Read the rest

  • American Religion and the Iraq War

    Reading Time: 5 minutes

    Considering the un-peaceful tendencies in the Christian religion is it logical for a Christian to work for a peaceful future? The belief in the apocalyptic end of the world seems to work in the other direction. Many American Christians supported the Iraq War and justified their support by citing the Book of Revelation. Were they obeying the internal logic of the Christian religion, or were they mistaken? Considering the fact that Christians outside of the United States were not so supportive it’s likely they were mistaken.… Read the rest

  • Agribusiness Meets Reality

    Reading Time: 6 minutesI recently said that the words of those who criticize Laudato Si’ have no substance. Now I’ll try to be more specific.  Laudato Si’ is a rebuke of current practices, including agribusiness, but it is not the only warning voice. In this post, agribusiness meets reality.

    The human population will reach 9 billion people by 2050, even if we manage to slow the birthrate. The world has never had this many people before. We have to plan according to the facts we have.… Read the rest

  • Neocons Erased George Kennan

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    George Kennan tried but never succeeded in living down his famous ‘X Article’ in which he said ominous things about the Soviet Union. When he talked about containment, he thought he was recommending the political containment of a political threat, not some ‘doctrine’ of perpetual military containment. More importantly, he thought containment should apply to the Americans as well. Sadly, the neocons were able to use the words of George Kennan to achieve their aims. The neocons erased George Kennan.… Read the rest

  • A Challenge to Politics As Usual

    Reading Time: 4 minutesOur choices are limited if we can only talk about what we can realistically do. But if we’re talking theory, anything is possible. Since I’m in charge of my own theoretical world, I’ll offer some solutions. This is a challenge to politics as usual.

    Start With the Environment and its Social Effects

    I’ll start with solutions to environmental problems. The particular environmental goal will guide any changes in politics and economics. After the environment, social effects will be the next criterion in decision-making.… Read the rest

  • Nomads and City Dwellers: Institutions and Worldview

    Reading Time: 12 minutes

    Ancient Israel: Its Life and Institutions, Roland de Vaux

    Roland de Vaux observes that the Bible is limited as an exhaustive ethnographic record of ancient nomadic and urban institutions. While settled sheep-breeding groups do not offer a direct parallel, nomadic Arab societies share close ancestral and institutional ties with early Israelites, allowing pre-Islamic and traditional Arab life to clarify early Israelite organization. More information is available on the source material.

    Forms of Nomadism

    Nomads and City Dwellers
    Arab Bedouins

    The True Bedouin

    The true Bedouin (man of the desert) is a camel-breeder and can survive in regions where the annual rainfall is less than 4 inches.… Read the rest